Hand Catch and Spot Landing Contest
28 December, 2008


A hand catch landing contest  was successfully run in Clearwater Bay flying site on 28 December 2008. The wind condition of the day was basically clam, so it was well suitable for this kind of contest. The rule for this contest is to allow each pilot to have two launches within one minute time frame. If he successfully catches the plane in the first attempt, he is awarded with 3 marks, 2 marks are awarded for the catch on the second attempt, 1 mark for the third attempt and zero mark thereafter. In one minute time, a maximum of 6 marks can be achieved for two successful first-attempt catches. There were six rounds of contests, pilots flew one by one in each round. The scores for the best five rounds of a pilot were be used to calculate the final position for the pilot. In order to protect the public and other onlookers nearby, a safety net was installed on the firing zone just behind the pilot position.

A total of 8 pilots joined the contest. The first pilot to fly was Eric who performed magnificently to grab a full score of 6 marks. Eric was famous not only because he has mastered the skill in hand-catching sailplanes but also the skill to verbally cheating others to believe what is hidden behind him. So, this time he has unveiled his potential fully. The second pilot to fly was Lee Man who was crowned the king of hand-catcher after winning the first hand catch contest last year.  Without disappointment he got a full score also. Then came Philips, who was new to this contest. Definitely, his skill was still immature and he managed to get only one insecure catch of 2 marks. Black Boy is another guy who has mastered and perfected the skill of hand catching. After round one was completed only three pilots. Eric, Lee Man and Black Boy got a full 6 marks. By the end of round 6, two pilots, Third Brother and Black Boy got a full score of 30, followed by Lee Man with a score of 29. Unluckily, Eric was just 1 mark behind Lee Man and was not qualified for the final. After a short break, the final kicked off with three top pilots. With two rounds of contest in the final, Lee Man performed superbly with full scores for both rounds, while Third Brother and Black Boy failed to get full mark due to influence of the variable wind condition, bad luck men! So, the champion for the hand catch contest was Lee Man! This was the second time he got the title of king of hand catcher, well done! Below is the score table:
 

Hand Catch Contest (Qualifying)

Pilot

Round 1

Round 2

Round 3

Round 4

Round 5

Round 6

Final Score

Eric Wong 3+3 3+2 3+3 3+2 0+0 3+3 28

Lee Man

3+3

2+3

3+3

3+3

3+3

2+3

29

Philips

2+0

0+3

0+0

3+0

0+0

0+0

8

Third Brother 0+3 3+3 3+3 3+3 3+3 3+3 30
Uncle Chan 2+0 3+3 2+0 0+3 3+2 0+0 18

Stanley Chan

0+0

0+0

0+0

0+2

3+3

0+0

8

Black Boy

3+3

3+3

3+3

3+2

3+3

3+3

30

Lou Tsz Ming

2+0

0+2

3+3

3+0

0+0

0+3

16

 

Hand Catch Contest (Final)
Pilot Round 1 Round 2 Final Score
Lee Man 3+3 3+3 12
Third Brother 3+0 0+0 3
Black Boy 3+2 0+3 8

 


Lee Man on the right approach to get a full score, well done!


Well, it was a bit off course, but still a full mark was awarded to Black Boy


Oh!, Philips has tried his best, close enough


Click to watch a movie how Lee Man got a full 6 marks easily


Click to watch a movie how Third Brother got a full 6 marks


Click to watch a movie how Philips tried his best to catch


The king of hand catcher was awarded to Lee Man, this is second time he got the honor


Let's have a group photo after the hand catch contest

 
After the hand catch contest, a spot landing was arranged. Three concentric circles were painted on the sandy grassy slope.  Points were given according to the distance measured from the nose of the landed glider to the center target; 5 points for glider parked inside the inner circle with 1 meter diameter, 3 points for the middle circle with 3 meters diameter, 1 point for the outer circle 5 meters diameter, and 0 otherwise. A total of 10 pilots participated in the spot landing contest. Actually the condition was quite challenging for the pilots because the wind was too weak and occasionally it was coming from the black! Lee Man performed superbly with firm control to steer his plane to the right spot while most others had difficulty to stabilize their planes and steer them on course. After five rounds of contest, Lee Man won the spot landing contest again followed closely by Eric. It was a big honor for Lee Man because he won two contests in a day, congratulation! The score sheet for the spot landing contest is shown in the table below:

 

Spot Landing Contest

Pilot

Round 1

Round 2

Round 3

Round 4

Round 5

Final Score

Eric Wong 3 3 1 3 1 11
Uncle Chan 0 0 0 1 1 2

Lee Man

3

5

3

1

1

13

Philips

0

3

0

1

0

4

Albert 0 0 0 0 0 0
Kenneth 1 1 3 3 1 9
Black Boy 0 3 0 0 0 3

Stanley Chan

0

0

3

0

0

3

Third Brother

1

1

0

1

1

4

Ken Ma

0

1

0

3

0

4

 


Lee Man and Black Boy were helping to prepare the landing spot


The judges were discussing whether the landed plane was inside the red circle or not


The 2nd runner-up prize awarded to Kenneth


Oh! Eric got the 1st runner-up prize


The champion of spot landing contest was gain Lee Man


Let has a group photo for the winners!